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The Defence Review and its outcome will also have implications
for a wide variety of our political and economic interests, especially
our relations with our partners in the EFC. Some of our allies moreover
have put us on notice that they do not accept that we are bearing a
disproportionate share of the Alliance defence burden and will challenge
our methods of calculating our national effort.
47.
Scarcely less important than alterations in our force capabilities
themselves are the forms of consultation, presentation and phasing of
our plans. In particular the defence cuts must be presented with due
consideration for the West's negotiating position in MBFR. An announced
indication to cut UK efforts in support of NATO without reference to
the objectives which we and our allies have set ourselves in MBFR
could seriously undermine the cohesion of Western participants in the
negotiations, lead to uncoordinated unilateral Western reductions,
and remove the need for the Russians to accept reductions in their
own forces in order to secure large cuts in NATO forces.
48. The nature of our continuing contribution to NATO will have
political as well as strategic importance. The essentials should be
the vital British contribution to Alliance deterrence of general war
together with some capability for the use of limited forces in conditions
of violent peace. The aim should be to produce British and Alliance
forces that are visibly effective and versatile in role, taking account
of the longer term concept of balanced Alliance forces rather than
balanced national forces.
V.
49.
CONSIDERATIONS OF MORALE AND RECRUITING
The decisions of Ministers and the timing and manner of their
announcement could have a profound effect on the morale of the Services
and on recruiting. Recognising this, the Secretary of State for
Defence has said in the House of Commons that he has at the top of
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